House of the Day: Ivy-Covered ‘Castle’ in The Hamptons

The upscale village of Southampton, New York, is an oceanfront enclave of shake-sided beach mansions and 1920s stucco homes. So this red-brick historic home for sale at $4.3 million would stand out, even if it didn’t have a turret. Locally known as “the castle,” this 1911 home at 143 Herrick Road, Southampton, is on the National Register of Historic Places.

The home’s owner, William Sofield, is a world-class designer who bought the home for $830,000 in 1999 and restored it carefully. He updated all the systems but decorated the interior in the arts-and-crafts style of the home’s era. There is no stainless steel or white marble in the kitchen — he instead used white, retro appliances.

The home is on the small side for the area — less than 3,000 square feet — and is covered in ivy, so that it just peeks out of surrounding greenery. There are two bedroom suites on the main level. In the turret, the master bedroom has a free-standing soaking tub.

The gazebo poolhouse is perhaps the home’s most distinctive feature, with carved windows and doors. The 0.43-acre property is landscaped with gardens and brick walkways, with a heated gunite pool.